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FEDERAL POLICY UPDATE

In recent months, federal policy actions and proposals have posed ever increasing threats to the rights and funding for services for people with mental health and substance use challenges and our partners in the disability rights, independent living, housing, healthcare and criminal justice reform advocacy communities across ���������� and nationally.

In response, the Alliance has taken a number of actions to underscore that recovery happens in communities and that it is imperative that outreach, engagement and voluntary participation in community-based services and supports of choice are critical. The data is clear that peer services, access to housing first and harm reduction approaches and recovery supports are effective and cost-effective approaches that foster health, wellness and recovery, community success and improve personal outcomes!

Protecting Federal Funding for Essential Services

In January, the Department of Health and Human Services sought to abruptly cancel nearly $2 billion in Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) grants, placing over 3,000 essential community-based programs at risk.

In response, the Alliance and thousands of advocates from across the country demanded a reversal of these cuts and, in collaboration with strong congressional support, were able to push the federal government to reverse the cuts withing 24 hours, a powerful demonstration of the impact our groups can have when we work together.

We were especially grateful for the leadership of our close ally ���������� Congressman Paul Tonko, who helped to generate a letter from 100 of his colleagues in protest of actions that would have jeopardized the recovery and lives of thousands of our people from across the nation.

In the end, the recently enacted federal spending package actually included modest increases or stable funding for several key behavioral health programs. For example, the Community Mental Health Block Grant increased slightly to $1.012 billion, the Substance Use Prevention, Treatment, and Recovery Block Grant rose to $2.013 billion, and funding for the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline increased to $534.6 million.

While these investments are important, sustained funding and policy support are necessary to address the ongoing behavioral health workforce crisis and expand access to community-based services.

Protecting Access to Essential Healthcare and Social Supports

Fighting funding cuts is only one of many actions a united community advocacy effort must take to counter such threats. The Alliance has been taking action, through direct engagement with congress and organizing grassroots advocates, to oppose proposals that would jeopardize federal support for Medicaid, housing, food and other safety-net programs, greatly limit access across the continuum of essential community crisis, peer, rehabilitation and support services, and expand the use of coercive, criminalizing and institutionalizing policies.

Fighting against Cuts to Medicaid Coverage

We have joined a broad array of peers, mental health and substance use advocates, families, youth, and providers in pushing back against federal policies that would impose burdensome verification processes or unnecessary distinctions between “permanent” and “temporary” disabilities for Medicaid exemptions. These changes could disproportionately impact people with mental health and substance use disabilities whose conditions often fluctuate over time. Advocates continue to call on states to offer additional benefits advisement to keep eligible people on Medicaid, provide more supported employment programs, and simplify processes to reduce burdens on people as they navigate more frequent eligibility checks.

We are also working to push states to adopt expansive definitions for exemptions for looming Medicaid work requirements enacted in H.R. 1 last summer. H.R. 1 provisions allow exemptions for disabling mental health and substance use conditions, but the law allows states to set these definitions within certain federal guidelines. States have until January to set up their systems for work requirements and more frequent eligibility checks.

Preserving Civil Rights and Disability Protections

The Alliance is also working alongside our friends at the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law and other disability rights organizations to fight against litigation that could weaken Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, a cornerstone civil rights law protecting people with disabilities from discrimination in federally funded programs. The states of Texas, Alaska, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, and South Dakota are pursuing a  challenging the  and calling for courts to declare this rule unconstitutional.

If successful, this legal challenge could undermine protections that support community living and reinforce the principles established in the Olmstead vs Lois Curtis decision by reducing disabled people’s ability to enforce their right to live and participate in the community, leading to far more people being forced into institutions when they can live in the community.  are calling for advocates in the nine states that have brought this lawsuit to demand their leaders drop the legal challenge to ensure this rule is not stricken down.

Protecting Voting Rights and Civil Participation

Our groups have also raised concerns and continue to push congressmembers to reject proposed legislation that would require new documentation requirements to vote. National disability and civil rights organizations have emphasized that these policies could create significant barriers for people with disabilities, low-income individuals, and communities of color.

Supreme Court Action to Protect the Rights of Unhoused Americans

In a positive development, the U.S. Supreme Court recently allowed a lower court ruling to stand that protects the rights of people experiencing homelessness to ask for assistance in public spaces. Advocates say the decision reinforces the principle that seeking help for basic needs is protected speech.

Supportive Housing at Risk

Advocates are also closely watching an ongoing legal challenge related to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) supportive housing Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO). The lawsuit challenges recent efforts to change funding rules in ways that could restrict how supportive housing dollars are used and potentially limit access to housing for people with disabilities, including those living with mental health and substance use conditions by limiting their use to a maximum of two years and putting burdensome treatment requirements in place to access housing.

Supportive housing has long been recognized as one of the most effective strategies for helping people remain stable in the community while accessing voluntary services. Advocates are concerned that restricting these funds could undermine Housing First approaches and reduce access to housing for people who need it most.

Housing First is  as one of the  to addressing homelessness and supporting recovery. The model prioritizes providing stable, permanent housing without preconditions, such as sobriety or treatment compliance, and then offers voluntary supportive services to help people maintain stability. Research consistently shows that Housing First programs lead to greater housing stability, , and faster exits from homelessness than traditional “treatment first” approaches that require people to complete programs before receiving housing.

Veterans

Recent federal actions signal a significant and concerning shift in how the government is approaching support for some of the most in need veterans. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), in partnership with the Department of Justice, has announced a new initiative that would expand the use of guardianship for veterans, particularly those experiencing or at risk of homelessness and deemed unable to make their own medical decisions. This effort would allow VA attorneys to initiate guardianship proceedings in state courts, potentially placing hundreds of veterans under the control of court-appointed decision-makers and, in some cases, into involuntary or institutional settings.

While federal officials describe this as a way to support “vulnerable” veterans and facilitate institutional transitions, advocates across the country have raised serious concerns that this approach risks undermining autonomy, due process, and civil rights, and may shift focus away from the real issue, the lack of accessible, community-based mental health services and housing.  that expanding guardianship could lead to increased institutionalization rather than investing in proven solutions like supportive housing, peer support, and voluntary services that help veterans live and thrive in their communities.

One Major Response: Forming a New National Coalition to Protect People’s Rights and to Advance Recovery-Centered and Peer Operated Services!

In response to the growing number of federal policy challenges, advocates from across the country have come together to launch a new national campaign focused on protecting civil rights, strengthening community-based services, and advancing recovery-oriented policies. The coalition includes leaders from mental health, substance use, disability rights, housing, youth, families, and justice reform organizations and is working to coordinate national advocacy efforts.

The Alliance for Rights and Recovery is playing a critical leadership role in this effort, helping to bring together representatives of those groups to a mid-January Rights and Recovery Summit at the Kripalu Center in January, with input from national advocates from across the spectrum. We are working to build a coordinated infrastructure for advocacy, communications, and rapid response to harmful policy proposals.

This work will include:

• Coordinated national advocacy actions to protect civil and human rights
• Rapid response strategies to counter harmful federal proposals
• Public education and media campaigns to shift narratives about mental health and recovery
• Development of model state and federal legislation and policies that promote voluntary, community-based services
• Efforts to expand access to peer support, housing, harm reduction, and recovery-oriented care

Through this coalition and our ongoing policy work, the Alliance will continue pushing federal leaders to prioritize voluntary, recovery-oriented programs that we know work, rather than policies that rely on coercion or institutionalization.

We will continue to keep members informed as federal policy discussions evolve and as new opportunities emerge for advocacy at the national level.

Alliance members and partners who want to better understand these federal policy developments and their potential impact on ���������� are encouraged to register for the Alliance’s upcoming Executive Seminar. The seminar will provide a deeper analysis of federal policy changes and create space for advocates, providers, and system leaders to discuss strategies to mitigate potential harms while advancing reforms that strengthen community-based mental health and substance use services. It will also highlight how ���������� leaders and advocates can work together to push for policies that better support the people and communities we serve.

Register Today: